Chapter 146: Revenge Strategy

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"Six thousand spirit stones... six thousand two hundred!"

The Fire Essence Date, a rare and important auxiliary herb amongst the Core Formation auxiliaries, was fiercely contested.

"Six thousand six hundred!"

A middle-aged man with yellow skin at the late stage of Foundation Establishment made a strong bid.

"Hahaha! He Yuanwu? A Fake-Dan Immortal competing for a mere Core Formation auxiliary herb, yet still hiding his identity?"

An old man’s mocking voice echoed.

"He Yuanwu?"

Lan Chang'an and many other cultivators cast their gaze towards the yellow-skinned middle-aged man at the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

He Yuanwu was the fourth disciple of Huanglong Immortal and was quite renowned in Huanglong Immortal City. However, ever since he was challenged and tied by Tuoba Jin, his sharpness had greatly diminished, and he had become much more low-key.

After Tuoba Jin achieved the status of a Golden-Dan Immortal, He Yuanwu's "fame" grew alongside it.

Becoming a Golden-Dan Immortal was extremely rare and attracted much attention, even from the surrounding countries' cultivation worlds. Whenever someone admired Tuoba Jin's achievement of forming a Golden-Dan, He Yuanwu was inevitably mentioned as the grindstone, the background character.

Challenging a Fake-Dan Immortal while still at the late stage of Foundation Establishment was a tale worth telling, not to mention, that battle had sharpened Tuoba Jin's spirit, thus increasing the chances of forming his Golden-Dan.

"Senior Mo, you must be mistaken. I’m just a wandering cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Realm, not a Fake-Dan Immortal from Huanglong Mountain."

The yellow-skinned middle-aged man calmly denied it.

"Whether you admit it or not, don't think you can easily obtain this Fire Essence Date." From the VIP balcony above, an old man in a beast-hide cloak with white hair and wrinkled skin chuckled leisurely.

"The Fake-Dan Old Ancestor of the Mo Family?"

Many cultivators at the scene recognized the old man's identity.

"The Mo Family had grievances with Huanglong Mountain in the past and were oppressed by them. During the beast tide, the Mo Family even gave birth to a True-Dan Immortal."

The Mo Family was one of the seven major families in the Liang Kingdom, located in the southeast of Huanglong Immortal City. Many years ago, the prosperity of Huanglong Immortal City severely impacted the business of one of the Mo Family’s medium-to-large markets.

"Six thousand six hundred! Is there a higher bid?" The auctioneer coughed lightly, reminding everyone.

"Six thousand seven hundred spirit stones." The Mo Family’s Fake-Dan Old Ancestor slowly bid.

"Seven thousand spirit stones."

The yellow-skinned middle-aged man, suspected to be He Yuanwu, narrowed his eyes slightly and continued to bid.

"Seven thousand one hundred!"

The Mo Family’s Old Ancestor increased his bid by only one hundred spirit stones each time. At this point, the price of the Fire Essence Date had clearly exceeded its normal auction price.

After a few more rounds of bidding, the yellow-skinned middle-aged man spent over eight thousand spirit stones to win the Fire Essence Date.

"Fellow Daoist He! I wish your master’s last disciple success in Core Formation soon."

The Mo Family’s Old Ancestor smiled, not continuing to bid till the end. He was simply trying to disrupt things a little, making it less smooth for the enemy Huanglong Mountain.

With the deep foundation of Huanglong Mountain and the strength and connections of Huanglong Immortal, obtaining the items needed for Core Formation was just a matter of time; it couldn’t be stopped.

Even a dying camel is bigger than a horse.

Moreover, Huanglong Mountain was at most old and weak at the moment, far from extinction.

"Hmph, old ghost Mo! You really are a persistent shadow! I hid my identity and set out in secret, so how did you recognize me?"

The yellow-skinned middle-aged man who had obtained the Fire Essence Date decided to stop pretending, and the aura of a Fake-Dan cultivator emanated from him. His appearance reverted to that of a fierce, bald man.

"So it really is He Yuanwu."

Lan Chang'an narrowed his eyes slightly. Earlier, he didn’t dare to rashly use his spiritual sense to probe.

As a Fake-Dan cultivator, He Yuanwu had no use for Core Formation items for himself. His actions were likely for Fu Xuemei.

When facing the path to Core Formation, having an earth spiritual root was just a greater hope compared to ordinary cultivators. To truly achieve a True Dan, serious preparation was still needed.

"Years ago, although Fu Xuemei reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment, she was still some time away from reaching the ninth level of Foundation Establishment," Lan Chang'an mused.

He rarely paid deliberate attention to the information about his former enemies, to avoid raising any suspicions. However, he had a rough idea of Fu Xuemei's cultivation progress.

Fu Xuemei was much younger than Zhao Siyao. This was her progress even after being delayed by her younger brother.

Now, the power and prestige of Huanglong Mountain had greatly diminished. Huanglong Immortal had consumed a portion of his True-Dan’s essence to save the Huang Dragon Beast, significantly reducing his strength and lifespan.

Opposing forces wouldn’t sit idly by and let Fu Xuemei smoothly reach Core Formation; overt or covert obstruction was inevitable.

If there was a good opportunity, Lan Chang'an wouldn’t mind secretly pushing things to prevent Fu Xuemei from forming a core.

The grudge of obstructing one's path didn't necessarily require killing.

Fu Xuemei's compensation to him back then, including the Huanglong Pavilion VIP token, had already exceeded the value of a superior quality Foundation Establishment Pill.

This woman wasn’t inherently bad; her reputation in Huanglong Immortal City was decent.

After all these years, Lan Chang'an no longer harbored much killing intent.

If he could take action once, secretly hindering Fu Xuemei’s Core Formation, regardless of whether successful or not, this karmic tie would be resolved.

...

The competition for the Fire Essence Date came to an end, and He Yuanwu soon left the auction house.

Lan Chang'an made a symbolic participation midway, placing a bid once.

The value of Core Formation auxiliary herbs varied.

Next, the second Core Formation auxiliary herb, named "Wuqi Grass," was auctioned. Its value and rarity were somewhat inferior.

Unlike the Fire Essence Date, it could not be directly consumed to slightly increase the chances of Core Formation.

Wuqi Grass had an initial bid of three thousand spirit stones.

This time, Lan Chang'an truly participated in the bidding.

In the end, he won the Wuqi Grass with a slight overbid at the price of four thousand six hundred spirit stones.

Both the Fire Essence Date and Wuqi Grass were just auxiliary ingredients for the "Crystal Condensation Pill."

The Crystal Condensation Pill, as a high-end strategic resource, was worth tens of thousands of spirit stones.

The Core Formation spiritual item "Tianjing Water" that Lan Chang'an obtained from Daoist Tianshu couldn’t directly increase the chances of Core Formation, but it could slightly improve the quality of the formed core.

Having obtained third-rank spiritual bamboo and Wuqi Grass one after another, Lan Chang'an’s goal for this trip was achieved, and he didn’t plan to make any more bids. Otherwise, even with his late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, he would attract too much attention.

Lan Chang'an left the auction house early when a prototype magic treasure was being auctioned.

"Aside from the leaf-like patterns on its shell, the vitality inside its body is significantly stronger than that of other second-rank Profound Water Turtles."

Lan Chang'an observed silently, comparing it to the information he had on Profound Water Turtles.

"Moreover, this turtle is not only adept at water-based techniques but also exhibits a notable wood-elemental aura within its bloodline."

Who would have thought that the sickly turtle from years ago, once nurtured by Guan Qiaozhi, would not only thrive but grow into an elite member of its species?

Half a month later, the Profound Water Turtle’s new cultivation base stabilized.

Whoosh!

After advancing to the second rank, the Profound Water Turtle could now perform water-elemental flight techniques, eagerly practicing within the cave dwelling.

A stream of blue water-light carried the turtle, making it zoom around.

Thud!

Due to its inexperience, combined with the confined space, the Profound Water Turtle crashed headlong into the stone wall of the cave-dwelling, causing the protective barrier to tremble.

The turtle flopped to the ground, legs splayed out as it whimpered and tears welled in its eyes, a large bump rapidly forming on its head.

Squeak!

From the rafters, the Earth Burrowing Rat appeared, baring its teeth in a sneer of disdain.

Lan Chang'an chuckled, ignoring the Profound Water Turtle's pitiful look and complaints.

This turtle had been overly pampered by Guan Qiaozhi. Although it was still young, compared to the Earth Burrowing Rat when it had the same cultivation, it lacked a bit of resilience and independence.

Plop!

The Profound Water Turtle instinctively cast a healing spell, a soft blue-green light emanating from it, radiating a pure life force that quickly soothed the bump on its head.

Within just a few breaths, the bump on the turtle's head vanished, its injuries healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Water and wood-element healing light? The effects are quite impressive..."

Lan Chang'an was slightly surprised.

It wasn't uncommon for some turtle species to possess wood-elemental abilities, but they weren’t necessarily skilled in healing.

The Profound Water Turtle's dual-element healing technique seemed to exceed expectations slightly.

However, this wasn’t some grand mystical ability, merely a regular innate spell.

Over the next few days, Lan Chang'an conducted some initial tests on the Profound Water Turtle's capabilities.

Its water-based combat spells were slightly stronger than those of other superior-grade bloodline demon beasts of the same level but fell short compared to most earth-grade bloodlines.

Its defensive abilities, particularly its shell, were outstanding even among earth-grade bloodline demon beasts.

Its ability to conceal its aura was exceptional.

Its escape techniques were at a normal level for earth-grade bloodlines.

Its healing abilities were somewhat above average for its species, especially when combined with its strong defensive capabilities.

Even without practical combat experience, in Lan Chang'an’s simulations, if his mid-stage Foundation Establishment self and the peak mid-stage second-rank peak Earth Burrowing Rat were to join forces, it would be difficult to kill the Profound Water Turtle with conventional means.

Simply enduring was one thing, but being able to endure and heal at the same time was another matter entirely.

...

Another half month passed.

Lan Chang'an waited until his rental period was up before leaving the cave dwelling.

The Profound Water Turtle employed its "Turtle Breath" ability, completely retracting its aura, and was tucked into the spirit beast bag.

This turtle's ability to hide its aura was significantly stronger than others of its kind. At the very least, a Fake-Dan cultivator without expertise in beast taming wouldn’t detect any cracks in it.

Even a regular Core Formation Immortals wouldn’t easily notice anything amiss without deliberately probing.

As soon as Lan Chang'an flew into the air:

Whoosh!

Not far away, a strong spiritual pressure surged through the sky, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound.

"A Fake-Dan Immortal!"

"Their core is still unstable, with its energy fluctuating—seems like they haven't fully stabilized yet."

Lan Chang'an instinctively looked over, guessing that it was the individual who recently attempted the Core Formation breakthrough with a small phenomenon.

Soon, a burly middle-aged man with tan skin and exposed, muscular arms appeared in his view.

"Xiang Jinglong?"

Lan Chang'an immediately recognized the new Fake-Dan cultivator.

Having just advanced, Xiang Jinglong was brimming with excitement as he flew out of his cave dwelling and let out a triumphant roar to the heavens.

His rugged appearance, coupled with a slightly fierce aura and a poor reputation, caused the nearby Foundation Establishment cultivators to avoid him from afar.

This made Xiang Jinglong, who wanted to flaunt his newfound status by heading into the city to boast to his friends, feel slightly irritated.

At that moment, Xiang Jinglong noticed a plain-looking young man at the late stage of Foundation Establishment nearby.

The young man seemed to sense his presence but didn’t try to avoid it. Instead, he appeared slightly surprised, as if he were admiring the aura of this newly advanced Immortal.

"Hmm? Did this person notice me?"

Lan Chang'an realized that his brief lapse in concentration, as he studied Xiang Jinglong for a moment too long, might have drawn the latter's attention.

Xiang Jinglong adjusted his flight path slightly, heading toward Lan Chang'an's location.

Lan Chang'an had never made a habit of cowering or evading when faced with higher-ranked cultivators.

"Congratulations, Senior Xiang, on succeeding on the path to Core Formation."

As Xiang Jinglong's gaze swept over him, Lan Chang'an maintained his respectful demeanor, slightly bowing and clasping his hands in salute.

"Not bad, you have guts."

Xiang Jinglong slowed down his speed, his mood lightened further.

He was in high spirits, and with a wave of his hand, he tossed several mid-grade spirit stones towards Lan Chang'an.

"You’re the first junior to congratulate me. Here’s your reward!"

(End of chapter)